Book Reviews and More: 2016

Saturday, 31 December 2016

Top Ten Fiction Books 2016

Top Ten Fiction Books 2016

This was a near record year for my reading. With reading 272 books on my reading list and 268 on Goodreads (Goodreads does not allow you to count books that are reread) it is my second highest year since I started keeping track. Before I get down to my top ten fiction list let’s take a look at some statistics from this year.

272 Books Read
154 Fiction
118 Non-Fiction
73 Catholic
17 by Chris d’Lacey
16 by Andrew Clements
7 by Courtney Sheinmel

With 154 books to choose from it was very hard picking just a top ten.

1. Sword and Serpent Series – Tarlor R. Marshall

Sword and Serpent - The Tenth Region of the Night

2. We Are All Jacob's Children - Noah ben Shea
3. Kringle - Tony Abbott
4. Flickers - Auhur Slade
5. Erth Dragons – Chris d’Lacey
The Wearle - Dark Wyng
6. The Unicorne Files – Ufiles Trilogy – Chris d’Lacey

A Dark Inheritance – Alexander’s Army - A Crown Of Dragons

Friday, 30 December 2016

Top Ten Non-Fiction Books 2016

Top Ten Non-Fiction Books 2016

This was a near record year for my reading. I ended up with 272 books on my reading list and 268 on Goodreads (Goodreads does not allow you to count books that are reread). But before I get down to my top ten list let’s take a look at some statistics. First I started the years with a Catholic Reading List of 32 books, that list was ever expanding. And over the year I managed to read 73 Catholic books.

272 Books Read
154 Fiction
118 Non-Fiction
73 Catholic
11 by Matthew Kelly
7 by Fulton Sheen

So looking at those numbers it was very hard to narrow down to a top ten non-fiction reads this year! But here goes.

Top Ten Non-Fiction Books 2016

Thursday, 29 December 2016

Top Ten Fiction and Non-Fiction Books Fourth Quarter 2016

Top Ten Fiction and Non-Fiction Books Fourth Quarter 2016

This was another great quarter! I was able to read 89 books over the last three months. Just short of a book a day. I read 49 non-fiction and 40 fiction books this quarter. So narrowing it down to a top ten fiction and non-fiction was not an easy task! I have built out an awesome and ever expanding Catholic reading list for 2016. There are some amazing books in this list! Though to be honest working from my favorite and influential books by year list it was very hard to narrow down to the top ten fiction list this quarter.

Non-Fiction:
1. Father Michael E. Gaitley 33 Days Books
33 Days to Merciful Love: A Do-It-Yourself Retreat in preparation for Marian Consecration
33 Days to Mornding Glory: A Do-It-Yourself Retreat in Preparation for Marian Consecration
2. Here. Now. A Catholic Guide to the Good Life - Amy Welborn
3. Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit - Kevin Vost
4. Joseph of Nazareth - Federico Suarez
5. Behold the Man: A Catholic Vision of Male Spirituality - Harold Burke-Sivers
6. The Four Signs of a Dynamic Catholic - Matthew Kelly
7. Finding True Happiness - Fulton J. Sheen
8. Holy Water and its Significance for Catholics - Henry Theiler
9. Cathloics Wake Up! Be a Spiritual Warrior - Jesse Romero
10. Be A Man - Father Larry Richards

Fiction:
1. The Tenth Region of the Night - Taylor R. Marshall - Sword and Serpent Book II
2. The Unicorne Files – Ufiles Trilogy – Chris d’Lacey

A Dark Inheritance – Alexander’s Army - A Crown Of Dragons

Wednesday, 28 December 2016

A Case of the Meanies - Courtney Sheinmel and Jennifer A. Bell - Stella Batts Book 4

A Case of the Meanies
Stella Batts Book 4
Courtney Sheinmel (Author)
Jennifer A. Bell (Illustrator)
Sleeping Bear Press
ISBN 9781585361984
eISBN 9781627531153
ASIN B00DNJNJ6M

My oldest and I have read the first eight books in this series together this year. I have fallen behind on my reviewing but this book and this series is so good I am going to go back and review them all. My daughter loves these books. At the beginning of the year we were alternating books between three different series. But the last three books we have read were Stella Batts. My daughter loves these books and they are great book for her reading level and for us to read together. And I must declare that the Stella Batts books are my daughter’s favorite books of all the books we have read.

In each book Stella has a list of facts about herself. In this book it is: “In case you haven’t read my other books or you just don’t remember them so well, I’ll tell you a few things about me:

I live in Somers, California, with my parents and my sister, Penny.
Soon I’ll live with my brother Jack, too. But not yet, because Mom’s still pregnant with him.
We own a candy store called Batts Confections.
Okay, so I guess my parents are the owners, not Penny and me. But there are things named for us in the store—like Stella’s Fudge, and the Penny Candy Wall.
When the baby gets born, something will be named for him too, but not until then because Mom says that’s bad luck.
Also she and Dad keep changing their minds about his name, though Mom says Jack is the absolute final choice. Anyway, that’s not really about me, and this is my list.
I’m eight years old, which means I’m in third grade.
Writing is one of my favorite things to do. Obviously.”

Stella Batts writes books. And with each book she writes she learns a new lesson. If you have read the earlier Stella Batts book you know that Stella has had conflict with Joshua Lewis in her class for a long time. In this book things escalate, they escalate a lot. In this book Joshua decided to have his birthday party at Batts Confections and he invites everyone in their class except Stella. Stella tries to win Joshua over with kindness but it seems to backfire on her. But Stella becomes a superhero. Also in this book Mrs. Batts has the baby that has been expected since book one.

This book was an excellent read. My daughter and I love reading these books. Her three favorite things about this book are:

That you need to try and understand why someone might be mean.
That being mean back will never solve anything.
Be the best you, that you can be and leave others to make their own choices.

These books are best read in order as they tell a continuous story. But we have read a few out of order and they always stand up well as standalone stories. And we heartily recommend both this specific book and the series. And hopefully there will be more books available in the series soon.

Books by: Courtney Sheinmel:
Stella Batts:
Stella Batts Needs A New Name
Stella Batts Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow
Stella Batts Pardon Me
Stella Batts A Case of the Meanies
Stella Batts Who's in Charge?
Stella Batts Something Blue
Stella Batts None of Your Beeswax
Stella Batts Superstar
Stella Batts Scaredy Cat
Stella Batts Broken Birthday
…

The Kindness Club:
The Kindness Club
Designed by Lucy
…

Agnes and Clarabelle Series :
Agnes and Clarabelle
Agnes and Clarabelle Celebrate
…

Other Books:
Edgewater
Zacktastic
My So-Called Life
Positively
Sincerely
All the Things You Are

Tuesday, 27 December 2016

In Conversation With God Volume 1 Part 1 Advent - Francis Fernandez

In Conversation With God
Volume 1 Part 1 Advent
Francis Fernandez
Scepter Press
ISBN 9780906138847
ASIN B006C33IF8

I first reviewed this series almost 10 years ago. And have been reading them off and on for over 26 years now since they were first released starting in 1989. And to be honest I have been waiting for eBooks or an app version to come out for a number of years. There are many things I love about the eBook editions. First I can have the whole series with me all the time. So not only can I read the daily devotion for that day and for any special feasts that day. But I can use them for study and use the extensive indexes to read specific points or search for something I read before. The biggest difference with the eBook editions is each of the 7 volumes is split in two parts.

I have read through this whole series 6 or 7 times and every time I get something more out of them. I have owned 3 copies of the physical books and now own the eBooks. I find that starting them again this year in ebooks, with no underlining of passages or notes in the margins that they are new and fresh. Though to be honest over the 4 weeks of Advent I highlighted over 20 passages my first time through in the eBook. I will share some of those passages to show you the power in these devotions:

"Holy purity entails a daily self conquest, for it is not acquired once and for all. There may be times when the struggle becomes more intense, so that it is necessary to have more frequent recourse to the Blessed Virgin and to use, perhaps, some more unusual remedy."

"Other ways of caring for and cultivating this virtue are those small, customary mortifications which help to keep the body under control. If we want to keep intact the most beautiful of all the virtues, which is chastity, we must realise that it is a rose that only blooms in the midst of thorns, for which reason it is only to be found, as are the other virtues, in a mortified person."

"To become like children at heart while remaining adults can be costly. It requires real determination and strength of will, and a total abandonment to God. To become children we must renounce our pride and self sufficiency, recognising that we can do nothing by ourselves. We must realise that we need grace and the help of God our Father to find our way and keep to it. To be little, you have to abandon yourself as children do, believe as children believe, beg as children beg."

"For each one of us, our vocation is the central theme of our lives. It is the axis around which everything else turns. Everything, or almost everything, depends on our knowing and carrying out what God asks of us."

"Our Lord calls every one of us by our own name, today as much as ever. He needs us, it seems. Furthermore He calls all of us to a holy vocation, a vocation to follow him in a new life whose secret He alone possesses."

"The humble person knows his place, however exalted or lowly it be. He feels he belongs there and is happy in his work. He knows his limitations and possibilities, and does not allow himself to be deceived by mere ambition. His qualifications are the right ones for his job, to a greater or lesser degree: he is never a dead weight, holding others back. He carries out his work as well as he might, as a member of a team."

"The Christian way of life demands a radical change in attitude towards earthly things; they should be procured and used, not as an end in themselves, but as a means of serving God. Because they are only a means they are not worth putting our hearts into; true goods are something else altogether."

I am greatly looking forward to reading this series with fresh eyes this year. And doing so through the eBook versions. These devotions all follow the same format. Each day has about 6 pages of readings broken into three sections. In the past I have read the whole thing at once in the morning, or broken it up and read part in the morning, part at lunch and part in the evening. There is so much great material in these books. I know people who have read them every year for decades now and they still get something more from them each year.

It is my prayer that these book will enrich my life this year and if you give them a try that they will be of abundant spiritual blessing to you also.

(Note: this books is part of a series: A Year of Reading Intention - Catholic Reading!)

Books edited by Francis Fernandez Carvajal:

Year of Faith Treasury: Prayer

Year of Faith Treasury: Holy Communion

Year of Faith Treasury: The Roman Pontiff

Year of Faith Treasury: The Sacrament of Confession

Year of Faith Treasury: The Virtue of Faith

Year of Faith Treasury: The Virtue of Fortitude

In Conversation with God:

Volume #1 Advent and Christmastide

Volume #2 Lent and Eastertide

Volume #3 Ordinary Time Weeks 1-12

Volume #4 Ordinary Time Weeks 13-23

Volume #5 Ordinary Time Weeks 24-34

Volume #6 Special Feasts January-June

Volume #7 Special Feats July -December

Complete Set 7 Volumes

In Conversation with God eBooks:
Volume 1 Part 1 Advent
Volume 1 Part 2 Christmas and Epiphany
Volume 2 Part 1 Lent and Holy Week
Volume 2 Part 2 Eastertide
Volume 3 Part 1 Ordinary Time Weeks 1-6
Volume 3 Part 2 Ordinary Time Weeks 7-12
Volume 4 Part 1 Ordinary Time Weeks 13-18
Volume 4 Part 2 Ordinary Time Weeks 19-23
Volume 5 Part 1 Ordinary Time Weeks 24-28
Volume 5 Part 2 Ordinary Time Weeks 29-34
Volume 6 Part 1 Special Feasts January-March
Volume 6 Part 2 Special Feasts April-June
Volume 7 Part 1 Special Feats July -September
Volume 7 Part 2 Special Feats October -December

Books by Francis Fernandez Carvajal:

Overcoming Lukewarmness

Through The Winds and Waves

The Day that Changed My Life

Life of Jesus

...

Monday, 26 December 2016

The World's First Love: Mary, Mother of God - Fulton J. Sheen

The World's First Love: Mary, Mother of God
Fulton J. Sheen
Ignatius Press
ISBN 9781586174743
eISBN 9780898705973
ASIN B002T7DE2S

This was the fifth book by Fulton J. Sheen that I read this year. With each book that I read I find that with each book I read the more of his writings I add to my reading list. This book was an amazing read. It was very interesting reading Sheen's theology of Mary our Mother and her role in leading people to Christ Jesus. And this book with its focus on Mary and Marian theology is inspiring.

The Chapters in this book are:
PART I THE WOMAN THE WORLD LOVES
1 Love Begins with a Dream
2 When Freedom and Love Were One: The Annunciation
3 The Song of the Woman: The Visitation
4 When Did Belief in the Virgin Birth Begin?
5 All Mothers Are Alike-Save One
6 The Virgin Mother
7 The World's Happiest Marriage
8 Obedience and Love
9 The Marriage Feast at Cana
10 Love and Sorrow
11 The Assumption and the Modern World
PART II THE WORLD THE WOMAN LOVES
12 Man and Woman
13 The Seven Laws of Love
14 Virginity and Love
15 Equity and Equality
16 The Madonna of the World
17 Mary and the Moslems
18 Roses and Prayers
19 The Fifteen Mysteries of the Rosary
20 Misery of Soul and the Queen of Mercy
21 Mary and the Sword
22 The Woman and the Atom

It was very interesting reading about Sheen's focus on Mary in relation to the former Communist regime. But also his thoughts on Islam. For he states: "If Islam is a heresy, as Hilaire Belloc believes it to be, it is the only heresy that has never declined. Others have had a moment of vigor, then gone into doctrinal decay at the death of the leader, and finally evaporated in a vague social movement. Islam, on the contrary, has only had its first phase. There was never a time in which it declined, either in numbers or in the devotion of its followers." And from this his focus on the need to pray to Mary as an example to witness to and bring about the conversion of this group.

This book does an excellent job of explaining Mary's role within the Catholic church, and through her appearances, messages and ministry the job of drawing all of us home to God through Jesus. Sheen draws us in through the history of Mary and the church. And shoes her central role in history.

This was another excellent read. The book concludes with these words: "O Mary, we have exiled thy Divine Son from our lives, our councils, our education, and our families! Come with the light of the sun as the symbol of His Power! Heal our wars, our dark unrest; cool the cannon's lips so hot with war! Take our minds off the atom and our souls out of the muck of nature! Give us rebirth in thy Divine Son, us, the poor children of the earth grown old with age! "Advance, Woman, in thine assault upon Omnipotence!" Shame us all into enlisting as thy warriors of peace and love!" And this book will inspire us to grow in our faith and through that move is to action from the place of love. I highly recommend this book!

Books by Fulton J. Sheen:

God and Intelligence in Modern Philosophy

The Seven Last Words

Philosophy of Science

The Eternal Galilean

Calvary and the Mass

The Cross and the Beatitudes

Seven Words of Jesus and Mary
Seven Words of Jesus and Mary: Lessons on Cana and Calvary

Communism and the Conscience of the West

Peace of Soul

Three to Get Married

Life Is Worth Living Series 1-5