What the Heart Sees

What the Heart Sees is a collection of three novellas by Kathleen Fuller.  A Miracle for Miriam is about a young lady who was once very hurt.  She carries that pain with her every day of her life, but masks it under being busy.  Seth is recovering from a horrible car accident which has made him see what his priorities in life should be.  Can both of them find the healing they need?  Josiah has returned to Paradise with intentions to leave as quickly as he can.  Can he avoid the demons from his past or will he ultimately confront them and put them to rest?  He believes he is fighting alone, but he has forgotten the tenacity of his youthful best friend, Amanda.  She is excited to see her friend back, but cannot understand why he has changed so much.  In A Place of His Own, we find out that friendship and faith can overcome that which seems impossible alone.  What the Heart Sees is the final novella in this book.  The Amish community is recovering from a deadly car accident.  The survivors are moving forward with their lives, all but one who has fled to get as far as he can from the pain.  Christopher must decide if he can come to terms with what happened and truly live again.  Ellie must share her pain and accept her disability.  Will their friendship help them overcome the tragedy?
 
I enjoyed reading these three stories.  The issues confronting the characters are issues that many people face and these tales can help us to grapple with forgiveness, love, faithfulness, and hope.  I found parts of Miriam's tale to go a bit slowly, be somewhat repetitious, so I can't say that was my favorite of the three.  I do believe the middle book about Amanda and Josiah is my favorite because of the faithfulness of her friendship.  The final story is the most complex of the three, but not to its detriment.  This book offers many hours of entertaining reading and I award it 4 out of 5 pieces of bacon. 

Kathleen Fuller is a wife and mother as well as an author of novels, novellas, and short stories.  She has degrees in early childhood and special education.

What the Heart Sees was written by Kathleen Fuller, published by Thomas Nelson

Trouble was, her heart refused to cooperate.

One Thousand Gifts

Why doubt the dare to fully live?  Now and right here.  Why not let all of life be penetrated by grace, gratitude, joy?  This is the only way to welcome the Kingdom of God. 

Ann Voskamp is a farmer's wife and a mother of six.  Her days consist of chores, homeschooling six energetic, messy children, and working her way through a pile of laundry that never seems to get smaller.  The work seems endless.  Her life has not been without greater trials than those as her sister died before her eyes in childhood.  There has been pain, betrayal, and sorrow.  Surrounded by all this misery, Ann wondered, how can I have faith, "how do we find joy...?"  Her search brought her to her knees and led her to look, with new eyes, at the world around her.  VosKamp writes of her journey to eucharisteo, living fully, finding joy and invites her readers to undertake their own journey.

I was so excited to see this book arrive in my mailbox.  I put away the book I was currently reading and opened One Thousand Gifts.  Within a couple of pages, I knew this wasn't a book to read through in a weekend.  This is a book to read slowly and savor.  To pause and pray over the words VosKamp is speaking.  Her writing style is uniquely hers and I felt as if she were speaking right to me.  At times, it seems that it is one soul speaking to another.  The questions she asks, the challenges she throws out to God, the sadness of a soul wondering how can life be joyful and good in the face of so much suffering are thoughts that so many have had, myself included.  The answers she shares are hope filled and inspiring.  I doubt that a true seeker could read this book and not be changed.  I absolutely love this book and it will be one I treasure and read over and over again.  It is one that will be marked up, left near wherever I sit to read.  I give this book a 5 out of 5 pieces of bacon, but it deserves far more. 


Ann VosKamp is a farmer's wife, a mother of six and a writer.  She also has travelled with Compassion International. 

One Thousand Gifts by Ann VosKamp Published by Zondervan

The Duggars: 20 and Counting

We count every one of our children as a blessing from God.  But we understand that supersize families are unusual these days, and we've grown accustomed to the stares, questions, and comments wherever we go.  We also understand that there's a lot of curiosity.

 
Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar love children and it's a good thing because their firmly held belief that children are blessings from God and that birth control is wrong have resulted in them having 19 children, to date!  After the birth of their fourth baby, the questions started.  "Are they all yours?"  "You do know how that happens?" "How do you support them all?"  Many of these questions have been answered through the TV series on the Discovery Channel, but Michelle and Jim Bob thought they would write a book to answer these questions and provide more of an insight into their busy family life.  Along with sharing their religious beliefs and financial plans, they include their family history, how they "train and correct" the children, and organizational tips.  Readers also get to see plans for their 7,000 square foot house and family recipes.


Many days I climb into bed, exhausted from parenting four children all day.  I can not imagine having 19.  Since the Duggar family has been brought into the spotlight, I've wondered, "how do they do it?"  I watched the TV series and was interested in the organization of the household as well as their methods of raising the children.  This book provides even more information on those topics, tips that readers can use.  I really enjoyed reading this book, not only because of the tips, but for the reassurance that it doesn't matter if you have 4 or 19, that, yes, it's hard, but you can survive and enjoy it!  It's easy to see they love each one of their children and the life they have together.  I think it's important for a reader to approach this book as a parenting book instead of a book about celebrities because that is how the Duggars wrote it.  My initial concerns that this would be a feeding of the media frenzy were laid to rest by the end of the book's introduction.

By the way, did you know that their kitchen pantry has a roll up garage door that opens to the driveway so that they can get their groceries from the car right into the storage area?  That is some smart thinking and just so cool! 

I give The Duggars: 20 and Counting 4 out of 5 pieces of Bacon.

The Duggars: 20 and Counting was written by Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar, published by Howard Books, a division of Simon & Schuster Inc.

Plain Proposal

Saul didn't know it yet, but Miriam was going to marry him.

Miriam's summer stretched before her and she anticipated it with much excitement.  Her cousin was on her way to visit; getting away from some troubles.  Miriam was in her runschpringe, a time of freedom for Amish teens.  Then there was Saul, the man Miriam loved and was determined to catch the eye of.  This wonderful time was sure to end predictably, she thought, with her cousin going home, Miriam joining the church and marrying Saul.  But life is strange and unpredictable and soon things happen that she never could have imagined.  Will life ever be the same?  Will her faith hold up no matter where she goes?  Is Saul really the one? 


Plain Proposal by Beth Wiseman is one in the series of Daughters of Promise.  This book was a very interesting read and I found myself unable to put it down.  There are twists and turns that are very unexpected and compelling.  Wiseman transports her readers to Miriam's home from page one.  For a reader who complains about the predictability of Amish novels, I would say, "try this."  If you love that same predictability, do not fear, there is much to capture you as well.  I would give this a 4 out of 5.
 

Beth Wiseman was an award winning journalist until 2008 when she decided to write novels full time.  She is currently contracted with Thomas Nelson to write a certain number of Amish themed books, but she does have her first non-Amish book releasing in 2012. 

Plain Proposal was written by Beth Wiseman, published by Thomas Nelson

Fragile

In a small suburb of New York City, everyone knows everyone else.  It's more than a friendly wave of acquaintances; it's a life long knowledge of who your neighbors are.  People keep an eye on each other, helping out when they can.  It sounds idyllic.  Unfortunately, it's also a place where high school cliques never seem to get outgrown, old mistakes are not forgotten, and skeletons don't stay quietly in the closet.  In Fragile, Lisa Unger explores how "fragile" our communities, relationships, and even ourselves can be.

Maggie fled as a young adult, seeking someplace where she wasn't under the town microscope.  Adulthood brought her back where she married and settled down to raise their son.  While people around town have their problems, Maggie does her best to help them.  All is well until one of the town teens disappears.  Maggie uses all her psychologist skills to help with the case.  What she discovers may be more than she can handle.  Things begin to fall apart and she is forced to question her trust of those closest to her.  Life in "small town USA" becomes a nightmare and she doesn't know if she can handle it.

Overall, I enjoyed the book because it stood the cliched concept of the perfect small town on its head.  It is easy to look around our communities and see the good, but in reality, so much more can hide just under the surface.  Be warned that parts of the book are hard to read, that the subject matter is very serious.  If you have a difficult time watching the newscast of your nearest city, you might want to skip this read.  Otherwise, looking past the events into the characters, their thoughts and feelings, you will have a very interesting read.  The Ruminating Reader awards 3 out of 5 stars.  It falls short of 4 stars as due to the subject matter, I do not know if I will be rereading this anytime soon.


Lisa Unger is an award winning, bestselling author. Her novels have been published in over 26 countries around the world.  She lives in Florida with her family. 


Fragile is written by Lisa Unger and published by Shaye Areheart Books.

 

The mind, the psyche, adjusted better to catastrophe than to uncertainty.  She hoped she'd never have to find out either way.