In the Bookcase

11/29/2016

Grab a free devotional book about Louisa May Alcott!

It's Louisa May Alcott's 184th birthday!


To celebrate this day, ACTA Publications is giving away 15 free copies of Susan Bailey's book Louisa May Alcott, Illuminated by The Message. How cool is that?!

I personally enjoyed Susan's book back in June during the LMA reading challenge. {See my full thoughts/review on the book.}

Louisa May Alcott: Illuminated by the Message by Susan Bailey

How can you get these free copies? Just go to THIS LINK and type in code HAPPYBIRTHDAY at checkout... and the book is YOURS!


11/25/2016

A Literary Christmas 2016 STARTS NOW + Book Ornament #GIVEAWAY!!

A Literary Christmas: 2016 Reading Challenge // inthebookcase.blogspot.com

Dear Readers,

It's time! Let the holiday reading begin! [Make sure to read all the way to the bottom! HINT = GIVEAWAY!!!!!]

Here's a quick re-cap about A Literary Christmas:

What's this holiday reading challenge about? ::: Whether you just want to read 1 amazingly-good Christmas book, or 10, you make your own list of titles to read, and finish as many of them as you can.

Where will it take place? ::: In your favorite cozy reading nook. Whether it be while wrapped in fleece blankets in bed... sitting by the fireside drinking hot chocolate... etc.

When will it take place? ::: November 25th - December 31st, 2016.


If you haven't yet, catch up on how to participate in A Literary Christmas.


Here's a few that I'm planning to read for the challenge:

(As soon as you start posting about the challenge on your blog or Goodreads, please start linking up your posts at the bottom of this page. I'm excited to see the books you're reading!)

*Click on the book covers to see the book details on Amazon.com.

God Bless Us Every One! Miracle on 34th Street A Miser. A Manger. A Miracle. Some Christmas Camouflage Ishtar's Odyssey

What books are you reading for this Christmas challenge?


AND NOW FOR THE GIVEAWAY! . . .


1 winner will receive their choice of Christmas book ornament from Papuan Lass!




The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe book ornament





Christmas Carols book ornament



Aren't these little books just DARLING?

This Christmas ornaments from Papuan Lass are pocket-sized books. The hard cover is made to look like an aged, leather-bound, antique book with cracks and worn spots on the leather.

The C.S. Lewis' timeless classic, "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" ornament contains 18 pages of treasured quotes and illustrations from the original book.

The "Christmas Carols" ornament features 18 carols, all traditional nativity carols and all legible.

A gold silk ribbon serves as a book mark and a loop with which to hang the book on a Christmas tree as an ornament. The book measures 3" x 2.5". Each page as well as the cover is sprayed with a matte finish acrylic sealer to preserve the ornament and enhance the leathery texture of the paper.
Connect with Papuan Lass online!
Etsy | Facebook



The giveaway is open to EVERYONE (yes, dear International readers, you too!), whether you're participating in the reading challenge or not. (But you can get 5 extra entries in the giveaway if you are taking part in A Literary Christmas!) Invite your literary-minded friends!

Everyone who answers the bonus trivia question (correctly!) in the entry form also gets 5 extra entries. If you're unsure of the answer, look it up online -- don't worry, it's NOT cheating, it's researching. =)

Giveaway rules: Open internationally. Ends on December 5th.

Win a Christmas book ornament from Papuan Lass on inthebookcase.blogpost.com

I'm so thrilled to be spending this holiday season reading some delightful Christmastime books -- And I can't wait to see which titles you're going to read for the challenge as well! Join me if you can.


a Rafflecopter giveaway


Link to any of your posts for this reading challenge!

Please link to your sign-up posts, book reviews, and other Christmas book posts here:


Black Friday BOOK SALE! (Excellent Christian titles!)

Black Friday BOOK SALE!

It’s that time of year. The time for buying presents, making wish lists, and planning New Year’s Resolutions. If any of those activities involve books for you, Indie Christian Authors has a perfect event for you.
From Nov 25 (that’s today!) through Nov 28th, more than 70 independent Christian books are on sale. You can find free shipping$0.99 ebookspackage deals, and more! And if your budget is depleted from Christmas shopping, they’ve got you covered with some freebies!
Think 70 books is overwhelming? Narrow it down and find the perfect books for you or someone on your Christmas list by using this quiz to generate a customized book list.
What awesome reads of 2016 are you grateful for? What books are you looking forward to reading in 2017?

A note on the Ebooks Only page. All books are listed as "Sold Out." This only refers to paperback copies of these titles. Please click onto the product pages to find descriptions and links to discounted or free ebooks. Also, some of the authors this year chose to not sell their paperbacks directly through the site. Those books are also marked "Sold Out" but if you click them open, you'll find a link to the site where they are on sale and a discount code for you to use at check out.

Acknowledgements: Thanks to Leah E. Good and Kendra E. Ardnek for their work organizing this sale, and Hannah Mills for her fantastic design work on the website graphics. Hannah can be contacted at hmills(at)omorecollege(dot)edu for more information about her design services.



11/24/2016

Holiday Sale at Lilla Rose...



Visit Independent Consultant Lizzie Chang's Lilla Rose website and on Facebook.

Stay tuned! I'll be reviewing a Lilla Rose Flexi Clip SOON!


11/22/2016

Book Review: Kitty Hawk and the Mystery of the Masterpieces

Kitty Hawk and the Mystery of the Masterpieces by Iain Reading (5 star review)


Kitty Hawk and the Mystery of the Masterpieces 

Kitty Hawk Flying Detective Agency series, #5

written by Iain Reading

222 pages // published in 2015 // young adult adventure


BOOK DESCRIPTION

Kitty Hawk and the Mystery of the Masterpieces is the eagerly anticipated fifth instalment of the Kitty Hawk Flying Detective Agency book series. This series features the intrepid teenage seaplane pilot and amateur detective Kitty Hawk as she continues in the footsteps of Nancy Drew and Amelia Earhart on her epic flight around the world.

After meeting up with an old friend in the eternal city of Rome, Kitty Hawk unexpectedly stumbles (almost literally) into a bizarre mystery involving creepy disembodied voices, secret hidden rooms, unbreakable mathematical codes, ominous chain-smoking strangers and an array of plundered artworks by such famous masters as Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro and Vincent van Gogh - all of it wrapped up and entwined in an enigmatic riddle hanging in plain sight right in front of everyone's noses.

With the help of friends both old and new, Kitty Hawk follows a trail of cryptic clues that leads her on a breathless tour across a quintessentially European landscape - from ancient Roman Italy to the darkest corners of Germany, Austria and beyond.

As with the previous books in the series, this new installment is perfect for firing the imaginations of readers of all ages. Filled with fascinating and highly Google-able locations and history, this exhilarating adventure will have armchair explorers and amateur detectives alike anxiously following every twist and turn as they attempt to help Kitty Hawk try and solve the extraordinarily bizarre Mystery of the Masterpieces.



My Review...

5 Star Rating

Another fun installment in the Kitty Hawk series. Upon arrival in Rome, Kitty stumbles into another big mystery. One that spans back to World War II, and prompts a visit to some other European cities of interest.

I was thrilled with the idea of this mystery from the get-go. There's riddles, coded messages on the radio, and priceless art that appears where it shouldn't be. I also loved how she got to meet up with secret investigators on the same track that she's on, and gets to work alongside them. Pretty cool!

Kitty has a upbeat and determined attitude, and I like her for it. She sees what needs to be done to figure out the riddles, and sets her mind figure it out.

Because of the historical intrigue, I think almost any age could enjoy this book. I felt that the plot kept me on my toes while I read, and I might have learned some fresh tidbits from international history. It was great to get to visit Rome "up-close" with Kitty and see how she experienced it with her friend Charlie (which you may remember from book 1).

Really, it is a fun book! I hope there will be more books in the Kitty Hawk series one day.

Kitty Hawk and the Mystery of the Masterpieces is available on Amazon in paperback and e-book format.


About the Author:
Iain Reading is passionate about Root Beer, music, and writing. He is Canadian, but currently resides in the Netherlands working for the United Nations. Iain is the author of the Kitty Hawk Flying Detective Agency Series, the dragon of the month club, and The Wizards of Waterfire Series. To learn more, go to Iain’s WebsiteTwitter, Amazon, and Goodreads.

Kitty Hawk series

Excerpt from Kitty Hawk and the Mystery of the Masterpieces:
PROLOGUE
There Has To Be A Rationale Explanation…
It was the creepiest thing I’ve ever heard in my entire life.
With my skin crawling with goose bumps, I listened as the psychopathic tinkling song of a child’s music box quickly faded into the high-pitch hiss of static and was quickly replaced by a sound that brought new meaning to the phrase of having one’s blood run cold. My knees literally went weak at just the sound of it, threatening to collapse under me like watery rubber.
.... my mind raced to find some explanation for the completely bizarre and otherworldly sounds that I was hearing. There has to be a rational explanation for this. This is real life, not a horror movie. There has to be something that somehow explains this!
These were all reasonable assumptions, of course, but what I was hearing was so completely fantastical that it seemed to defy all attempts at finding a sensible or logical explanation.
I closed my eyes for an instant as the room began to swim dizzily out of focus around me. My heart was beating so fast that my brain was simply overwhelmed by sensory input and it took me a second or two to recover from the wave of sudden lightheaded vertigo that had washed over me.
This can’t be happening, I told myself. Of course it was happening, but my brain simply refused to accept that it was real and the resulting disorientation made me feel like my entire world had suddenly been turned upside down, leaving me confused and struggling to find solid ground.
But I was determined to find my feet again.
Just breathe, I told myself as I took a very deep breath, which instantly began to make me feel a little bit more in control. I slowly exhaled and opened my eyes again, repeating this thought over and over like a mantra until I finally began to get a hold of myself.
Already feeling much better, I forced myself to take another breath and concentrate on exactly what it was that I was hearing. It was a voice–a woman’s voice that was supposed to sound human but there was actually nothing human about it. The voice was also speaking English, but what it was saying made absolutely no sense whatsoever and the effect of it was fiendishly unnerving.
There has to be a rational explanation for this, I told myself again as I glanced over at the others and forced myself to stand my ground. Of course, in the end there was a completely rational explanation for all of it. But little did I know how far I would have to go to try and find it or how many answers would still be left unsolved once I did.






P.S. Like and vote for this review on Goodreads and Amazon.

*Any Amazon.com purchase made through the links in this post support this humble blogger with a small commission. Thank you!


11/19/2016

Sign-ups open for A Literary Christmas 2016 reading challenge!

A Literary Christmas: 2016 Reading Challenge // inthebookcase.blogspot.com

Dear Readers,

I'd like to invite you to a SPECIAL READING EVENT this holiday season, where together we will celebrate all the excitement of Christmas book-reading during the most wonderful time of the year!

What's this holiday reading challenge about? ::: Whether you just want to read 1 amazingly-good Christmas book, or 10, you make your own list of titles to read, and finish as many of them as you can.

Where will it take place? ::: In your favorite cozy reading nook. Whether it be while wrapped in fleece blankets in bed... sitting by the fireside drinking hot chocolate...

Polar bear reading Christmas books


Or out on the ice sheets of the Arctic environment, with only starlight from the heavens and a tin lantern to illuminate the tiny text inside your vintage copy of A Christmas Carol.

But probably not the latter option.


This Christmas reading challenge is born of my own delight in filling the entirety of the month of December (and the latter of November, in most cases) with holiday-themed books galore. Literally, I keep adding to an ongoing booklist all through the year when I happen across Christmas titles that I may like to try my hand (errrr --- eyes?) at, just so I can read it when the holidays arrive.

Please tell me I'm not alone?

The challenge starts on November 25th. Yes, that's the day AFTER Thanksgiving, to keep the holiday grumblers away). But sign-ups are open NOW!

How to participate in A Literary Christmas:



  • Think about some Christmas books to read, or maybe re-read this season. This could include fictional stories (modern or vintage books), or non-fiction (an Advent devotional, or a book on Christmas traditions?)... it's up to you! Your goals can be 1 book, 5 books, or some short stories. AUDIO BOOKS & E-BOOKS ARE WELCOME!




  • Write a blog post or social media post to tell us that you're joining A Literary Christmas reading challenge, and maybe give us a sneak peek of the books you want to read for this challenge. Make sure to link to this blog (or even this individual post). Grab one of the challenge images to use in your post.

    A Literary Christmas: 2016 Reading Challenge // inthebookcase.blogspot.com


    A Literary Christmas: 2016 Reading Challenge // inthebookcase.blogspot.com




  • Link up below! Copy the link to your post online and add it to the linky below. Now you've joined the challenge!




  • Next step: Start reading the books on your list! When you talk about the books on your blog or review them (on Goodreads, your blog, etc.), be sure to link up your posts below so that we can all check out what everyone is reading. (I know that I hope to find some good book recommendations from you all!)

    A Literary Christmas officially begins on November 25th and ends on December 31st, 2016. (You may begin reading your Christmas books whenever it suits you though.) *wink*



  • Stay tuned!


    Watch for the upcoming giveaway, and once the challenge begins I think we can all gather some fresh holiday titles from each other. In the meantime, if you're looking for what books you should be reading this holiday season, check out some of the Christmas books I've shared about in the past, or visit online lists such as:

    Favorite Christmas Books

    Christian Christmas Books

    2016 Christmas/Holiday Christian Fiction


    Link to your sign-up posts!



    11/17/2016

    Book Review: Courage and Corruption // BLOG TOUR

    Courange and Corruption release!


    It's a brand new release in the Tales of Taelis series!


    Courage and Corruption by Sarah Holman (5 star review)


    Courage and Corruption // Tales of Taelis series, #3

    written by Sarah Holman

    161 pages // published in 2016 // young adult fiction


    BOOK DESCRIPTION

    Catherine is going with her mother and younger siblings to the mountains to hide from the coming war. While she fears what might happen she is looking forward to some time away from her twin brother, with whom she often fights. One foolish act changes all their plans, and one story caused not only confusion, but more fighting.

    Christopher does not believe his father’s story that they are descended from royalty. He is sure the story his father tells cannot be true. However, he is forced to go to the mountain castle of Coraway along with his mother and siblings. Will his father ever see him as a man? Will he and his twin ever be able to stop fighting?

    Little do Catherine and Christopher realize that they hold the key to Taelis’ future in their hands. While they discover the truth before it is too late?



    My Review...

    5 Star Rating


    There are so many good points to bring out in this story, it's almost unfair to start listing the first few that come to mind, in case I happen to forget some. Nonetheless...

    Courage and Corruption, perhaps even more so than the other Taelis novels and stories, has so many lessons and morals to be found within its pages. God's grace shines through it all and repeatedly touched my heart. I think that almost anyone reading this book could find a lesson (or more than one) in it that they can apply to their own life.

    Christopher and Catherine are two siblings who bicker often and share resentment towards each other. They do not see the destiny God already has in motion for their lives, just like we often miss the signs of His hands surrounding us. As the plot thickens and history unfolds around them in unexpected ways, these siblings learn much together.

    This tale also includes Brianna and John (favorite characters from a previous Tales of Taelis book). Now in their olden years, the couple is still giving their hearts and minds to the ruling of Taelis. A great battle is to arise, and King John must deal with heavy issues that will determine and alter the fate of Taelis.

    There are many stories to be found within this story. The adventure begins by a journey to visit relatives at Coraway Castle. What Christopher and Catherine discover there is beyond their wildest dreams, if they'll only listen and discard their stubborn hearts.


    Author bio:
    Sarah Holman is a not so typical mid-twenties girl: A homeschool graduate, sister to six awesome siblings, and author of many published books and short stories. If there is anything adventuresome about her life, it is because she serves a God with a destiny bigger than anything she could have imagined.

    Author Sarah Holman

    Visit the author online!
    BlogFacebookTwitterPinterestGoodreadsLinkedin


    Courage and Corruption is available on Amazon in e-book format.



    FOLLOW THE BLOG TOUR  >>

    November 15

    November 16

    November 17

    November 19







    P.S. Like and vote for this review on Goodreads and Amazon.

    *Any Amazon.com purchase made through the links in this post support this humble blogger with a small commission. Thank you!


    11/15/2016

    Book Release Day & GIVEAWAY! Unwritten Melody // BLOG TOUR

    Unwritten Melody blog tour


    Dear Readers,
    I have a special treat for you! Today we're talking about Tessa Emily Hall's new book release, Unwritten Melody. Just keep on scrolling down and you'll find out all about this book... AND have the opportunity to win an AMAZING PRIZE PACK!!! Check it out >>




    Unwritten Melody: About the Book

    Does breaking free require breaking the rules?

    Cassie Gilbert lives every day in the shadows of her deceased mom’s rebellion. But now that she’s seventeen, she finds herself longing to break away from her grandmother’s suffocating rules, experience what it’s like to be a regular teenager, and fulfill her songwriting dreams.

    James Russo, former American Spotlight contestant, escapes to small town Willow Creek, SC hoping to flee from his tarnished past. When a school project pairs him with the shy principal’s granddaughter, he’s determined to get to know this Emily-Dickinson-obsessed and typewriter-using girl. His plan? Convince Cassie to co-write songs for his demo album.

    As Cassie gets to know James over “project meetings” (more like opportunities to match her lyrics with his melodies), she becomes intrigued by his sense of adventure and contagious passion for music. But soon, his past becomes exposed. Cassie’s left to wonder—did she make the same mistake Mom did by falling for the bad boy?

    Then, Grandma’s control pushes her over the edge. Cassie must choose between remaining in the chains of yesterday, or delving into her own freedom by completing the melody her mom left behind.


    Unwritten Melody by Tessa Emily Hall


    Book Links:



    Excerpt from Unwritten Melody

    © “Unwritten Melody” Excerpt – Written by Tessa Emily Hall – Published by Clean Reads

    I close my eyes, take a deep breath, and raise my hand to push the doorbell.
    Before I can press the button, the door swings open.
    We can’t stay here.”
    What?”
    I enter the laundry room, and he closes the door behind me.
    My mom and Granny just left.” James hops on one foot, shoving the other into his lime-green sneaker. “Granny woke up from her nap with a fever. Mom thinks it’s the flu, so she took her to a walk-in clinic. Probably won’t be back for a while.” He snatches a leather jacket from on top of the washing machine and shrugs it on. “Your grandma wouldn’t mind if we went somewhere else to work on the project, would she?”
    I blink. “Umm—“
    He pops the collar of his jacket and glances at the folder tucked beneath my arm. “Those your lyrics?”
    Heat creeps up my neck. “Some of them.” It feels odd, acknowledging this. It’s the first time that anyone, other than Shelby, has laid eyes on The Envelope.
    His lips curl into a smile. He lifts a key from a key holder against the wall and slips it into a back pocket of his skinny jeans. “I figured we could grab a bite to eat. I could look over your lyrics. We could discuss the album. Your grandma wouldn’t mind, would she?”
    I’m not sure…” Which isn’t the truth, because of course I know. Grandma would rather see a C on my report card than hear I went out with a guy. (And a C, in her mind, is equivalent to an F on a normal person’s report card.)
    James must sense my hesitation, because he says, “Look, I can call your grandma, and we can reschedule the meeting if we need to. I didn’t realize that—”
    No.” My head shakes way too fast. “I mean… it’s fine.”
    Wait a second. I’m alone, in a house, with a boy. Shelby would be so proud of me.
    Grandma, on the other hand—let’s just say I probably wouldn’t see the light of day until I turn eighteen.
    There’s a Dream Bean Café—I mean, a café, called Dream Bean—that’s a mile away. We could go there, if you’d like.”
    Forming sentences through my mouth rather than fingertips is bad enough. But having to speak when my thoughts are a scrambled mess and my mouth is suddenly void of saliva?
    That should be illegal.
    Besides” —I lift a shoulder— “we can’t miss the project meeting.”
    He flashes that camera-ready grin, the one that’s laced with a hint of amusement. “Oh, of course not.”
    I bite my lower lip to keep from breaking out into a freakishly large grin. Is he flirting with me?
    James reaches out. His arm brushes against mine, and warmth floods my cheeks. He takes a step closer, and I prepare to give an extremely awkward hug.
    But then I hear the doorknob twist.
    My breathing—and clouded mind, for that matter—returns to normal.
    I step out of the way as he pulls the door open behind me. “After you, Typewriter Lover.”



    Giveaway!!!!

    Enter for your chance to win the Unwritten Melody Prize Pack! Two winners will be selected and announced on Tessa’s blog the final day of tour (Friday, December 9th) and will be notified via email.


    This prize pack includes…

    • E-copy of Unwritten Melody
    • Signed paperback copy of Purple Moon
    • Unwritten Melody mug, filled with goodies
    • Unwritten Melody swag, including a bookmark, pen, and poster
    • Starbucks mocha flavored instant coffee
    • Free Unwritten Melody: Page-By-Page Secrets PDF
    • Handmade journal
    • Typewritten thank you note

    Win this Tessa Emily Hall prize pack!


    *This giveaway is open to the US only


    a Rafflecopter giveaway




    About Tessa

    Author Tessa Emily Hall

    Tessa Emily Hall writes inspirational yet authentic YA fiction to show others they’re not alone—and because she remembers the teen life like it was yesterday (or a few years ago). The debut novel she wrote at 16-years-old, PURPLE MOON (Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas) was a Selah 2014 Finalist. Her second novel, UNWRITTEN MELODY, releases with Clean Reads November 2016. She’s the Founder of PursueMagazine.net, a magazine that inspires teens to embrace their calling. Tessa also enjoys helping writers achieve their dreams through her internship at Hartline Literary Agency.

    When her fingers aren’t flying 116 WPM across the keyboard, Tessa can be found making healthy homemade lattes, speaking to teens, decorating her insulin pump, and acting in Christian films. She writes in a small town nestled between the Blue Ridge Mountains and Southeastern coast. Her favorite way to procrastinate is by connecting with readers on her blog, mailing list, social media (@tessaemilyhall), and website.


    Connect With Tessa


    Typewriter quote from Unwritten Melody




    Blog Tour Schedule


    Don’t miss the next blog tour stop! Be sure to visit the following blogs on its designated tour date. You can also email tessaemilyhall (at) gmail (dot) com and request to receive the Blog Tour Packet. At the end of the tour, Tessa will send you the downloadable PDF that will contain all of the content from each blog tour stop.

    Tues., November 1 – Christ is Write
    Wed., November 2 - Adriana Gabrielle Writes
    Thurs., November 3 – The Depth of My Faith
    Fri., November 4 - Sarah Ruut
    Mon., November 7 – God is Love
    Tues., November 8 – The Bibliophile Angel
    Wed., November 9 - Emily Rachelle Writes
    Thurs, November 10 – Word Changers For His Glory
    Fri., November 11 – Christian Teen Book Reviews
    Mon., November 14 – Phyllis Still
    Tues., November 15 – In The Bookcase
    Wed., November 16 – Girl Meets Publishing World
    Thurs., November 17 - Anna Schaeffer
    Fri., November 18 – Ramblings of a Writer
    Mon., November 21 - Naomi and Books
    Tues., November 22 – Reading is My Superpower
    Wed., November 23 – Zerina Blossom’s Books
    Thurs., November 24 - Jennifer Slattery Lives Out Loud
    Fri., November 25 – Labor Not in Vain
    Mon., November 28 - Barbara Bruitt
    Tues., November 29 - Katy Kauffman
    Wed., November 30 – Jen Pheobus
    Thurs., December 1 – Northern Belle Meg
    Fri., December 2 – 2Me From Him
    Mon., December 5 - Nicole Quigley
    Tues., December 6 – The Destiny of One
    Wed., December 7 - Catherine Castle
    Thurs., December 8 - Rachelle Rea Cobb
    Fri., December 9 – Leslie L. Mckee


    11/12/2016

    Vintage Nancy Drew Books vs. Modern Reprints [Not Comparable]

    Did you know that the Nancy Drew books that you now read may NOT be the same ones your mother or grandmother got to read?


    The Mystery of Nancy Drew Books, Now and Then

    article by Kelsey McKinney


    "If you walk into a bookstore and pick up an early Nancy Drew title it will be impossible to tell whether it's been cut down or completely rewritten."

    . . . .

    "The book I got in the mail was newer. It had a yellow binding and an illustrated cover and was completely unfamiliar to me. At first I blamed my memory. Decades apart from a book can smooth it over, rewriting the story in your mind with rose-colored glasses into something it never was in the first place. But the further I got into my new copy, the more I felt that hunch Nancy taught me about. Something was not right."

    — Continue reading at Elle.com


    In short, the original Nancy Drew stories from the 1930s were edited in 1959 to have a modern appeal. Even key elements of the plot and some of the characters were either "updated", or worse, deleted. Can you imagine?!

    So, even though on the outside these two covers may look like the same book, they're not the same story. Frankly, that's just sad.

    The Mystery of Nancy Drew Books, Now and Then The Mystery of Nancy Drew Books, Now and Then


    11/02/2016

    Book Review: A Man Called Peter

    A Man Called Peter by Catherine Marshall (5 star review)


    A Man Called Peter // written by Catherine Marshall

    351 pages // published in 1951 // Christian biography


    BOOK DESCRIPTION

    A MAN CALLED PETER is a book about love -- the compelling love between a dynamic man and his God, and the tender, romantic love between a sensitive man and the girl he marries. The extraordinary life of Peter Marshall is a gripping adventure -- a poor Scottish immigrant, he becomes Chaplain of the United States Senate and as such one of the most revered men in America and an inspiration to Americans of all faiths.

    "The best stories are those that really happen. None of the novels concerning the ministry written during the last few years touches the heart and appeals to the mind in the way that Catherine Marshall does in telling the story of her husband's life." (Chicago Tribune)



    My Review...

    5 Star Rating

    What an AMAZING and INSPIRING book this is!

    I was drawn to reading it after watching the film, and was not let down. It's impossible to say if I liked the film or book better (and that's a major compliment to the movie, as the book is ALWAYS better than the film version!).

    A Man Called Peter film

    Some people may also recognize the author Catherine Marshall as the writer of Christy (which is a great novel). But in this book, A Man Called Peter, Catherine tells the story of how her husband Peter reached the pinnacle of his career as a minister. The highlights of his life are found in the small stories which lead to how Peter Marshall became a household name in the 1930-40s.

    Being a pastor (or pastor's wife), as you can imagine, can lead one to become involved with people and the community. In turn, it leads one to become involved in a lot of "interesting" situations that one might not have considered doing before. Catherine divulges some funny stories, a few secrets, and the demands of the Marshalls and their life led by Christ.

    When Scottish-born Peter Marshall desperately wanted to follow his calling to "the Chief" (one of his names reserved for the Lord), a friend led him to try ministering in America. There's a lot of (really good) stuff that happened before and during this move, but after coming to the U.S. in 1927, he eventually finds his place in life. And yes, it is in ministering about the grace of God.

    It seems that what set Peter apart from other ministers of his time is how he wrote his sermons. He talked to the community in a common way. He didn't talk in technical theological terms; he didn't speak over the knowledge of the common people. And what happened? Thousands flocked to him; they couldn't get enough.

    "Whereas most people write a sermon to develop an idea, Peter wrote his sermons to paint a picture and to arouse our emotions."

    He believed in "a God that knows folks' names."

    What I liked? Catherine simply adores her husband, and although she sometimes found his habits a bit comical (and they were), she lovingly supported all he chose to do. Frequently she talks about how he is a Scotsman, through-and-through. He had a few peculiarities, but that probably only aided in his likability. As every chapter went by, I couldn't wait to learn something new about this down-to-earth pastor. Always, it seems, he kept his humbleness about him, even as he reached for the very heights.

    Frankly, I'd say it's a charming biography.

    I'm going to have to read this one again one day.

    A Man Called Peter is available on Amazon in paperback, hardcover and audiobook format.




    P.S. Like and vote for this review on Goodreads and Amazon.

    *Any Amazon.com purchase made through the links in this post support this humble blogger with a small commission. Thank you!