Book Review: The wedding dress

The Wedding dress by Rachel Hauck is a wonderful story about a wedding dress and four amazing stories of love.
One day when Charlotte is driving around trying to think and she finds herself at an estate auction where she buys a trunk for $1000. Soon after that her life is turned upside down. Her fiancée wants to delay the wedding and a strange man in a purple ascot keeps coming around and confusing her with his words of wisdom. When Charlotte opens the trunk inside she finds a wedding dress in perfect condition. As she searches for the original owners of the wedding dress she finds friends, family, and stories of love.

Emily is a young girl living in 1912. Although she recently excepted the proposal from Phillip, her heart is for another man. Philip comes from a successful established family that will not only benefit her way of life but also her families. Emily is torn between her heart and her duties and the established law of segregation and thoughts of equality. As Emily learns to listen to her heart and God’s will she starts an amazing sequence of events that changes 4 generations of lives.

I really enjoyed this book. It is a feel good book. I know the author meant for the book to hold a lot more deep meaning (man with the purple ascot, etc) but I just read it as an entertaining book and enjoyed it. I do feel like the author tried to throw in too many tie ins to biblical stories and biblical references. They didn’t flow with the story most of the time. They more felt like after math snippets added.

Note: I did receive a copy of this book for free from www.booksneeze.com to read and review. The opinions listed above are my own and I as not compensated for a positive review.

Book List Update: February

Sally’s 2012 Book List


1. 12 books for booksneeze.com
a. This thing of Ours- reviewed in January
b. First Date- reviewed in January
c. Heart of Ice- reviewed in January
d. A Sound Like Fire- reviewed in February
e. Our Favorite Sins- reviewed in February
f. Constantly Craving- reviewed in February
g. Simple Secrets to a Happy life- got on Feb 29th

2. Bible in a year
a. January- In Exodus, on schedule
b. February- Thru Joshua, about 2 weeks ahead of schedule

3. Kisses from Katie- sitting on my kindle waiting to be read

4. 3 spiritual or uplifting books
a. The Cross Centered Life- started in February
b. Isreal my Beloved- sitting on my Kindle waiting to be read

5. 3 self help or organization books
a. Organized Simplicity by Tsh O- completed in January
b. Life Management- completed in February

6. 3 budget or business books

7. Anything else I want to
a. Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
b. Ancient Alier Encounters (“proving” the 1st chapter of Ezekiel is actually the first recorded Alien encounter on Earth)
c. 1 book in the JD Robb “in death” series
d. Will love for Crumbs- started in Feb

Book Review: The Simple Secrets to a Happy Life

I first have to say I have never met Luci, I have never heard her speak and this is the only book of hers I have read (so far) but I want to be her friend. The way she looks at life, friendships, what she has determined important in the world is amazing. A lot of the ideas in this book everyone knows and few practice. Her ability to make the tasks and skills simple to start is admirable.

Simple Secrets to a Happy Life is a book by Luci Swindoll outlining 50 simple tasks that make life happier. They are not superficial things like buy a new outfit because she understands temporary happiness is not enough. These 50 things are simple and yet hard at the same time. Things like being content, take care of yourself, giving generously, always be on time, do your homework, always be kind, etc.

There are many things from this book that I will take with me. The biggest thing is a definition of contentment she has in the book.

“Keep your heart free fro hate, your mind from worry, live simply, expect little, give much, sing often, pray always, forget self, think of others and their feelings, fill your heart with love, and scatter laughter wherever you go. These are the links in the golden chain of contentment.”



Note: I did receive a copy of this book from www.booksneeze.com for free to read and review. The opinions above are my own and I was not compensated for positive reviews. For more information on how you can review books for free go to www.booksneeze.com.

Book Review: Constantly Craving.

Constantly craving by Marilyn Meberg are always craving something more. Some times we realize it and sometimes we don’t.

Example: At age 5, Marilyn’s next-door neighbor (same age) was sure she would rather live in Marilyn’s house because she was an only child and the house would be quiet. Marilyn believed living at the neighbor’s house would be better because she had siblings. After switching for one night they realized they were happy with what they were used to.

She does some interesting comparison (I believe she is a psychologist) about how we want or crave things because they make us happy and fulfilled.

For instance a big topic of conversation is friendship and your spouse. She believes the common phrase “You marry your parents” is true. She goes on to dissect how our upbringing molds us into picking a spouse like our parents.

I have so say I can see her point and I agree. But I also kind of disagree. She is very specific on we pick traits in our spouse because those traits can be found in our parents and she doesn’t elaborate on how sometimes we pick traits in our spouse because they were absent in our parents.

(FYI. Mom and Dad if you are reading this, I am not talking specifically about you, us, me, and our relationship; just in general. I love you both.)

This topic of fulfilling past absences does come out later in friendships but not spouses.

I have to agree with other reviewers of this book. The first four or so chapters of this book are really good and then the book kind of falls away. It sort of seems like a lot of little tangents put together.

In general I did like the book. I think she has some very interesting points especially about how being content is about your relationship with Jesus and not the world around you. If Paul can be content in jail just before being executed, I can content in my car during a traffic jam.

Note: I did receive a copy of this book free from www.booksneeze.com to review. The opinions above are my own and I was not compensated for a positive review.

Book Review: Our Favorite Sins

Our favorite Sins by Todd Hunter is a self-help type book where he teaches you to look at the sins your heart desires. Weather sex, money, love, pride, food, drink, anxiety, etc it all shows where our heart and out focus is.

Todd helps you understand how to control these desires and refocus our hearts to its number one desire is to be like Christ.

I really enjoyed this book. I have foudn this book very interesting. Its something that I have been thinking about a lot sinse starting to read this book with everything I do. It truely makes you evaluated why you do something - for you and your earthly desires or for God and your desire to be closer to him.
Todd does a great job with breaking it down into doable steps and saying many times that there is no such thing as perfection. His real life, non-pious look about the topic makes it seem doable from the smallest vices to the big desires that plague you.

One of my favorite quotes from the books is (and I am paraphrasing) temptations do not make desires in your heart but desires allow for temptations to be present. So if food is not a sinful desire for your then going to a buffet is not a temptation.

I do recommend this book to people who are struggling with the big temptations and people who want to learn how to have a heart desire Christ more.

Note: I was given a copy of this book for free from www.booksneeze.com to read adn review. The opinions above are my own and I was not compensated for a positive review.

Sally's Book List for 2012

Here is my book list for 2012. Right now I am doing well completing it. I am reading a lot of other books that don't fall under any of these categories. I want to keep track of them too on a separate list.

Book suggestions are greatly appreciated. It doesnt have to fill a category. It can just be a great book you think I would enjoy.

Sally’s 2012 Book List

1) 12 books from Booksneeze.com
1. This Thing of Ours - reviewed in January
2. First Date - reviewed in January
3. Heart of Ice - reviewed in January
4. Sound like Fire - reviewed in February
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.

2) The Bible in a year
January – In Exodus, on schedule
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December

3) Kisses from Kate

4) 3 Spiritual / uplifting Books
1. The Cross Centered Life
2.
3.

5) 3 Self help / Organization Books
1. Organized Simplicity by Tsh O. - completed in January
2. Life Management - completed in February
3.

6) 3 Budget and/or Business Books
1.
2.
3.

Other books I've read in 2012
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
Ancient Alien Encounter ("proving" the first chapter of Ezekiel is actually a the first recorded alien encounter on earth)
1 book in the JD Robb "In Death" series

P.S. Its so amazing how much you can read with 1) a device that travels easy, and 2) turning off the TV and putting down the magazines.

Book Review: A sound Like Fire

A sound Like Fire by K D Veron is a story of the revelation. The story is mostly told by Dax, a politician who helps the New World Order start and then realized the truth behind the new government with his brother (a preacher) is disappears with all of the other Christians on earth. Dax and his Wife Sally flee for their life and freedom from the evil government forcing people to worship Lucifer . The book does an amazing job showing how things occurring today could be the start of the prophecy of the second coming. He using real political and world crisis as examples of the world cracking before Satan takes if over. The deception of the Antichrist to the masses is chilling and so believable. It makes me as a reader almost hyper observant to what is going on in today's politics, economics, etc.

This book was an amazing adaptation/interpretation of what the revelation will be like. I really enjoyed it. From all of the destruction and awful things that occurred I did take a lot of hope out of it. The Christian Church was not destroyed while on earth on persecuted. And that God always looked out for those who were left and then came to him. Although they did have to endure an awful physical life while still on Earth God loved them and was taking care of them.

The one thing I didn't love about the book was his use of real people in today's world and certain businesses and organization. Although he changed one letter in a name it was very obvious who he did not like. It just seemed kind of petty and immature to do it.

All in all, this is a great book. It was easy to read and in my opinion much better than the left behind series.

Note: I was given a copy of this book to review from www.booksneeze.com. The opinions above are my own and I was not compensated for a positive review.