Friday, September 30, 2011

The Christian Zombie Killers Handbook By Jeff Kinley


The Christian Zombie Killers Handbook is a two part book; it is both fiction and non fiction intertwined.  Its premise is that deep within all of us, we inherited sin DNA from the time that Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden.  This sin DNA is akin to a Zombie, that we are dead within ourselves.  Kinley goes on to explore this notion, and brings to light what Jesus did on the cross to free us from our inner Zombie.  

Enters Ben Foreman; the fiction component of the book.  Living in a time when a virus, Z-38 is sweeping the nation, turning people into Zombies, he is forced to battle the undead.  A little thrilling, a little gory, and honestly, a little weak in the storyline and ending.

Another component of the book was the fascinating history of "Zombies."  I was really unaware of some of the real events that have occurred in our world.  Whether you believe it or not, interesting.

The thing that really makes this book great is the teaching.  Sometimes it is easy for us to think, "I'm a good person, I'm a moral person."  This book gets into the nitty-gritty why we need Jesus so much.  And it doesn't drag us down into despair either.  It is a thoughtful, authentic look at sin, and then we are brought into the light, into the promise of Jesus and what he did for us and how we can be free.

 Kinley has taken a present day, worldly fascination and somehow made a biblical teaching on it.  I am still unsure of what I really think of this book, because honestly, I have never read anything like it.  Cheers to Kinley for thinking outside the box.

This book was provided to me for free by Book Sneeze, pending an unbiased review.




Wednesday, September 21, 2011

David and the Old Man by William Zemba

David and the Old Man is a real life story centered around the Zemba family and how one family member, David, suffered with anorexia nervosa.  It is a story of family roles, generational ties, and of long suffering.  Intertwined throughout is a message of faith and God's hand of grace and restoration.

Right away I began to feel drawn into the story, narrated by William Zemba,  a son to the old man and a brother to David.  The way he describes life and his family made me feel like I was sitting across from him, listening to a deeply heartfelt and important story.  

The story of David's anorexia was heartbreaking.  The book served to also educate people on anorexia nervosa, which I feel the author did a great job on.  I have professionally worked with clients with anorexia and the family systems and dynamics around those individuals has a huge impact on their sickness.  Mr. Zemba describes this in great detail, especially David's relationship with his father (the old man.)

I was captivated by all of the side-stories, the roles and traditions throughout the generations, and the fascinating people in the Zemba family.  The story was harrowing at times and I became stressed over the sheer magnitude of problems that this family faced,  but I am glad that I kept going to experience the end.


David and the Old Man is probably twice as long as it could of been, full of details extraneous to the main story, and often a little random. I felt that the use of other narrators to collaborate the story was redundant and affected the flow of the book.  Personally, I feel that none of that took away from the main story, which is well worth reading.  I feel that Mr. Zemba did an amazing job at portraying something so complex and  personal.


My favorite aspect of the book was the teaching.  William shared so much wisdom from the bible and from his heart.  This is a man who has been through so much, and is serving others through the telling of this story.  His practical advice regarding choices, weathering storms, and hearing the voice of God was the best part of the book. 

This book was provided to me for free by Book Sneeze, contingent on providing an unbiased review.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Night Night Blessings by Amy Parker, illustrated by Marijan Ramljak



Night Night Blessings is a wonderful new children's book that is perfect for bedtime.  It is narrated by a little girl who gives thanks to God for everything that she goes through in a typical day.  This book is geared toward toddlers and young children.

Night Night Blessings is beautifully illustrated.  It's warm, cozy pictures are paired perfectly with the gentle, loving words of the book.  The styling of the book with it's font and different sized sentences also adds to the general look of the book. 

My kids liked the book.  Their only complaint: "It's too short!"  They must of really liked it if they wanted more. My daughter liked the mention of "syrupy pancakes."   A breakfast request was quickly made after that.

The thing that I appreciated most about this book was how it teaches little ones to be thankful for everything that they have and do. It also shows them that God loves them and cares about them and is "watching them from above."  At the end of the day it is good to thank God, for indeed he is the giver of all good gifts.

4 out of 5 Stars

This book was provided to me for free by Book Sneeze, contingent on a non biased review.



Saturday, September 17, 2011

Ascent From Darkness by Michael Leehan


Ascent from Darkness is a true story of one man's journey into Satanism and how he found his way to the light of Jesus.  Michael Leehan recounts his 20 + years of torment living for the dark-side.  This incredible and vulnerable story is about spiritual warfare, redemption, and freedom.

Obviously many Christians have not heard of many of the things that Michael experienced.  This book is an amazing eye opener, especially for North Americans, whereby the concept of spiritual evil is often hidden and even made fun of.  So many of Micheal's experiences that lead him into Satanism stemmed from unanswered questions about God, childhood trauma and generational curses.  It is critical that the body of Christ begin to learn from Michael's story, to become equipped with God's wisdom and power for others that are struggling with torment.  Much of the modern day church does not believe in the miracles, signs, and wonders encountered in the New Testament.  Many believe that that time has passed, including demonic influence on people and society.  I have personally witnessed many times people being freed from demonic oppression and nothing in Michael's story surprised me.  We all deal with it in some way or another.


The biggest thing that I took away from this book was how the love of God through his people is what opened doors for Michael's freedom.  There are many examples of strategies that Satan gave Michael of how to infiltrate the church and wreak havoc among the believers there.  What astounded me was how in so many of these stories God sent Michael Christians who truly showed him the supernatural love of God, and how often times that stopped the plan of the enemy from being fulfilled.


What a gut wrenching story to hear, I was on the edge of my seat many times.  This is not entertainment for entertainment's sake.  The message of this story will deeply affect anyone who reads this book.  Michael, I commend you for writing this.  Your humility and willingness to bear it all so that others can understand is an act of love in itself.  I think you should write a part B to better equip the body of Christ to know what to do when they encounter people who are under Satanic pacts and influences.  


5 out of 5.

This book was provided to me by Book Sneeze for free contingent on providing an unbiased review. 

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Hermie A Common Caterpillar by Max Lucado


Hermie A Common Caterpillar is a book by Max Lucado, illustrating to young readers that in the eyes of God, they are special.  Hermie is a plain green caterpillar, not beautiful or particularly useful.  He meets other insects he desires to be like and asks God why he is so plain.  The story ends well when a magical transformation happens...

Hermie is written in an early reader format with a few illustrations. For kids who can't read (my kids) I read it out loud.  My kids loved it!  I put it on my e reader which was especially exciting for them.
 
My favorite part of Hermie was when Hermie kept asking God, "Why have you made me so common?"  and God answers, "because I am not done with you yet!"  Isn't it wonderful that no matter where we are in life, that God always has a plan for our transformation?  Max Lucado relayed so many truths in this book in a way that little ones can understand.

Max Lucado continually wins my praise.  He has become one of my favorite authors.  I honor him for being so dedicated to sharing God's truths with kids too:

 Matthew 19:14
14 Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”


5 STARS OUT OF 5

This book was provided to me for free by Book Sneeze for an unbiased review.


Saturday, September 10, 2011

Gabby God's Little Angel by Sheila Walsh, Illustrated by Marina Fedotova


 
Gabby God's Little Angel is about a little angel in training, Gabby, and how she is assigned to a sweet, accident prone little girl.  This book teaches young children that God loves them so much that he has sent helpers in the form of angels to watch out and protect them.
To begin with, this was a huge hit with my four year old.  She loved the story and laughed every time Gabby would have some mishap.   She took the book to bed with her, and then had it out again first thing in the morning.  I rarely see her get attached to a book so quickly.  5 out of 5 stars from her!
The illustrations, done by Marina Fedotova were warm and bright and accompanied the story well.  They remind me of some of the books that I had in the 80's, almost  a "Precious Moments"  kind of styling and  painting.
The story was well written and perfectly cute and funny.  Words like "Woo-hoo and Ta-Da"  make the story fun to read.  It is a little cliche, like how Gabby the angel trips over her harp (because we all know angels play harps.)  I like the usage of Psalm 91 as a center point to the story.
As a mom, the most important part of the story for me was, "Did they get the message?"  For that, I  give Shelia Walsh an A+!  The two biggest ideas, God loves you and he has sent angels to protect you;  my four year old could recite immedietly after reading just once.  Whenever my kids fall and don't get hurt like they could of I always tell them to say, "Thank you Jesus for protecting me!"  This book brings that message to life.  Loved it.
This book was provided to me free from Book Sneeze for an unbiased review.