May, June, and...

Should I just include the July books in here as well? Or should I say, book (singular). As you may have guessed, I didn't do so well reading in my spare time the last month or so. But then, what spare time?? We packed our entire house, moved across the country, unpacked our entire house, had 2 vacations, and pretty much started over in getting settled and calling a place home.

That aside, I'm looking at the stack of books above, and I think there is still 13 books there!! So as far as the total goes, I'm still racking in a book a week... I just haven't completed reading a book the entire month of July. Yet.

Anyway...

• The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings-- perhaps one of the best written novels I've read in quite some time. A beautiful story that is both clearly and capitivatingly written (is that a word?). It's a Pulitzer Prize winner as well, which it definitely deserved. Great story. Long book. (400 pages??)

• Nectar in a Sieve by Kamala Markandaya-- another novel (!!!). The story is set in India and replays the life of an Indian woman and the daily trials and challenges she faces.

• Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carol--I've read this book before and never much liked it. And I was reminded of that again this time too. Literary nonsense just... doesn't make sense to me.

• Redemption Accomplished and Applied by John Murray--this book is not an easy read!! However, it is still well written and gave me not only greater knowledge but also a greater appreciation for the greatness of our salvation by our Redeemer.

I finished off the Laura Ingalls Wilder Series and had a great time strolling down memory lane. No matter how many times I read these books, I think they will always remind me of my childhood.

• By the Shores of Silver Lake
• The Long Winter
• Little Town on the Prairie
• These Happy Golden Years
• The First Four Years

Then I also read:

• Christian Baptism by John Murray-- okay, so I only read a portion of this book and I'm not sure when I will finish it. But it sits on my bedside table just waiting for me to open it.

• Turning on the Light by Carol Ruvolo-- this is a great book that guides and instructs on how to read the Bible. It provides an excellent grounding for studying, interpretting, and applying God's word.

• The Crazy Makers: how the food industry is destroying our brains and harming our children by Carol Simontacchi--- a very interesting book about how the food we eat (and the food we feed our children) affects our growth, development, cognition, among many other things. It dealt with things like preservatives, organic foods, baby formula to name a few. I found the book to be really quite fascinating and eye opening. I can't say that I jumped on the bandwagon, but it definitely encouraged me to think twice about the food I eat and what I feed my kids.

• Mothers of Influence ---this book is one of those gifty kinds of book that people give you at a baby shower. It is filled with short stories about different people (mostly famous ones) and how their mother's helped shape their futures (e.g. Corrie ten Boom, Condoleeza Rice, Laura Ingalls etc). I learned a lot and enjoyed the stories.

And that's about it. But... July is not over and I have a couple other good reads going. I do so love to read. If only there were more hours in the day!!