Back to the Basics: A Few Book Reviews

   

     Having visited Pennsylvania Dutch Country recently I have been on a big Amish novel kick.  While this infatuation of mine definitely stemmed from visiting the area I really do believe my continued love for these novels is the simplicity of life.  Now don't get me wrong, no one's life is simple, however there are so many endearing qualities of Amish life.  Lot's of family, nature, and quiet time.  Tons of home cooked food and fresh grown produce.  No wondering what to wear or how much gas will cost this week.  Yes they deal with having to hand wash everything, hand make everything, and the physical labor of growing their own crops - it's not candy land but it is just really gratifying to sink into that world of theirs and know that my heart yearns for many of their tightly held principles (obviously technology is not one of them).  Without further ado here are my reviews for the second and third books in the Rose Trilogy by Beverly Lewis.

The Judgment:

     In this thrilling sequel we follow Rose Kauffman and her family's stories as they deal with a simple lifestyle.  Rose a true hearted Amish girl is tested in love and in faith as she struggles to see how other's potentially allow their faith to fall behind.  As her sister Hen also struggles through a major life crisis it is great to see family rally around one another.  With many trials and tribulations in this part of the series you are sure to be begging for the final installment.
The Mercy:

     The final installment of the Rose Trilogy this story solves all of the loose ends and provides many twists and turns all the way through the final pages. While some of the plot lines are easy to guess ahead some of the details are so surprising and left my heart feeling warm.  This series painted the picture of a girl with a big heart who honestly wants to follow her faith and her dreams all at once.  The conclusion is very final which is a huge relief in a series like this and it all makes me want to go live in or near an Amish town. 

Overall I delighted in all of the characters, tests, and transformations that occurred during this series and look forward to reading more Beverly Lewis novels in the future.

(Please note that none of the above links are affiliate links. I.E. I do not receive any compensation but rather want to point out some novels I really enjoyed.)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Fallish Foods - Meal Plan Week of Aug 26th

Image
The cake my sister and I made and decorated last week! Welcome to fall everyone!  My husband's favorite season is now upon us - next week's menus and going forward will probably include some soups and stews with warm baked breads.  We are loving the warm days and cool nights plus we have planted a bunch of new fall crops.  Baking is what we are most excited for around this house especially since we can do it without running the air too much!  The corn dogs we made this weekend! Here is our menu for the week: Monday: Breakfast: French Toast, Yogurt, Plums Lunch: Egg Salad Sandwiches, Peas, Apples Dinner: Gumbo from California Cookbook (one of my favorites), Garlic Bread sticks Tuesday: Breakfast: Granola Bars, Yogurt, Blueberries Lunch: Bologna Sandwiches, Carrot Sticks, Applesauce Dinner: Tostadas, Corn, Spanish Rice in our rice cooker Wednesday: Breakfast: Banana Nut Muffins, Scrambled Egg Lunch: Baked Potatoes with Toppings, Grapes Dinner: J
Read more

Garden Update

Image
We had an awesome week - weather wise - until the weekend then we got slammed by wind.  Thankfully we didn't sustain any major damage (although our patio cover tried to fly across the yard and we had to anchor it down better).  The garden is a bit wind blown and everything is leaning but we harvested some yummy food this week: Two Strawberries @ .5 Ounces Kale @ 12.25 Ounces 3 Artichoke @ 1 Pound 4.375 Ounces A Grand total of 2.07 Pounds The girls ate the strawberries and LOVED them - Little C keeps checking for more every time she goes outside and Big C tells her they are not ready then secretly asks if she can have the next ripe one!  For the kale I am going to try steaming it down like spinach and freezing it?!?  And I cannot wait to steam the artichoke and eat them dipped in mayonnaise - yummy! Happy Gardening All, Ash of All Trades
Read more

Theme Thursday: Bugs & Insects

Image
This week (and next) we are working on bugs and insects.  Lots of Eric Carle inspiration here folks and the girls are loving it!  The books we read over and over and over are: For activities we started with: Playing with our caterpillar felts. The girls reenacted the Eric Carle Story using their kitchen food. Big C also had to order the pieces by "age" telling the story of transformation. And they just played with them making them talk and such. Then we did fingerprint ants.  These are Big C's she even drew the antennae and legs! (They are supposed to be in tunnels). Then we made a glue web.  Squeeze white glue in the shape of a web. Let dry and voila! Little C's fingerprint ant.  She did not like paint on her fingers. Played with our fly, spider, and web. Talked about how spiders trap flies and drink their blood. Again they made her talk and named her and made her friendly.  Made caterpillars out of playdoh.  Big C also made an egg on a leaf and a cocoon. Then
Read more