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The Shack: Where Tragedy Confronts Eternity

William Paul Young

The Shack: Where Tragedy Confronts Eternity William Paul Young Amazon Price: $18.47
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By: Oasis Audio
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1538 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

The Shack 4 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Excellent book. We used it in our book review group and we had a very interesting discussion. Some thought it would change the way they looked at things from now on.

So this is NOT "THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO WILLIE" 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I've just finished reading this, and I must say the book may cause some controversy. As I read the other reviews, I was amazed at the need for the reviewers to protect "their Christianity". They criticize the text as being inaccurate and damaging. Damaging to what?

As an ordained Deacon, I have some knowledge of biblical issues. The only safety net we have is our belief in faith, and that Christ died for our sins so that we may have eternal life with God in Heaven.

Being said, the book is of course fiction. Everyone should have the right to enjoy anything they want. And, after reading the book, you may look differently at the use of the word "right" in this context. God speaks to everyone is His own way. So, in this version, He speaks as a large black women. To Isiah, as a King upon the throne. Perhaps Isiah needed to see God in that manner. Perhaps someone else would relate to God in the form of a large black women. Who am I to tell God what He is to appear as?

My relationship with God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit is much like the story told. He lives in me, and I listen to Him. But my time with Him is not subject to an just one hour on a Sunday morning. I have spent all week with him.

So, as you read the reviews, keep an open mind, and get a copy of this book. Take a few hours or days to give this a read, and reflect on your personal relationship with Christ. And, if you happen to attend a service over the weekend, share the copy of this book with one of your friends. And, if just one person shares his or her life with Christ, and accepts Him, then the book has done a wonderful and permanent thing.

Editorial Review:

Mackenzie Allen Philips' youngest daughter, Missy, has been abducted during a family vacation and evidence that she may have been brutally murdered is found in an abandoned shack deep in the Oregon wilderness. Four years later in the midst of his Great Sadness, Mack receives a suspicious note, apparently from God, inviting him back to that shack for a weekend. Against his better judgment he arrives at the shack on a wintry afternoon and walks back into his darkest nightmare. What he finds there will change Mack's world forever.

The Lucky One

Nicholas Sparks

The Lucky One Nicholas Sparks Amazon Price: $26.39
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By: Hachette Audio
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Subjects -> Literature & Fiction -> Authors, A-Z -> ( S ) -> Sparks, Nicholas

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 12 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

A Real Heart-Wrencher 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 2 people found this review helpful.

I have to admit that this book started a little slow for me, compared to Nicholas Sparks' other novels I've read, but it definitely didn't disappoint me in the end. I'll spare the details of what the plot is about - other reviewers have talked about it enough and there's a handy description of it at the top - but what I will tell you is that this is another Nicholas Sparks novel that will be hard for you to forget, or put down. You will fall in love with the characters he's so skillfully crafted, you will laugh with them, you will shed tears with them, and you will connect with them as if they are real people that you know.

You will also marvel at how the lives of these characters are all coincidentally interwoven with each other in some strange way. You will wonder how Nicholas Sparks manages to center his stories around the same general theme of love and fate, but still continue to shock you time and time again, without fail.

The Lucky One is a true heart-wrencher, at its finest. It is truly another unforgettable masterpiece by Nicholas Sparks. But, don't take my word for it. Go read it for yourself. I dare you not to be hooked.

Editorial Review:

In his 14th book, bestselling author Nicholas Sparks tells the unforgettable story of a man whose brushes with death lead him to the love of his life.

Is there really such thing as a lucky charm? The hero of Nicholas Sparks's new novel believes he's found one in the form of a photograph of a smiling woman he's never met, but who he comes to believe holds the key to his destiny. The chain of events that leads to him possessing the photograph and finding the woman pictured in it is the stuff of love stories only a master such as Sparks can write.

Dead Until Dark (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 1)

Charlaine Harris

Dead Until Dark (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 1) Charlaine Harris Amazon Marketplace: 1 new & used starting at $74.95

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 327 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Books are only OK, HBO Series True Blood is Better 3 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I've read Vols. #1 & #2 and I have to agree with a previous reviewer--the books are only OK. The True Blood HBO series is doing a better job with creating more depth in the supporting characters; creating a sub-plot to Sookie and Bill. I'll probably read the rest of the series if only to see how HBO will handle some of the funny twists and turns that take place and that's just in Vols. 1 & 2. After all it is a comedy, a dark comedy, but a comedy nevertheless.

Boring 1 out of 5 stars.
0 of 4 people found this review helpful.

Sorry, it just is. And the worst part is that the vampire is boring too.

It's not bad 4 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Like other readers, I picked this one up because of HBO's True Blood series. My niece loves these and has read several volumes. I gave it a read and, well, I thought is was pretty good. Not great - but pretty good. The cover is very misleading - at first (before the show even started) I thought it was a young teen book so I didn't bother. Well, it's not.

The problem is, I read the first volume and wasn't motivated to read the others. Not really sure 'why' but I think its the way the story is presented. I read the entire Twilight series and loved it - they do not compare, so a reader cannot simply assume that if you like one you will like the others. Not that one is worse than the other, just different. Both are from the perspective of the main character, but both are presented rather differently.

I think the problem may be the flow of the story. Harris' writing style is great but gave me a little bit of a headache - I found myself sounding like I had a southern accent in my head while reading. The book is from Sookie's perspective composed of a series of short 'matter of fact' sentences, almost like ramblings of a southern girl.

The story is good, you just need to get used to the writing style.

Editorial Review:

Anthony Award winner Charlaine Harris New York Times and USA Today best-selling Sookie Stackhouse novels entice countless fans with an irresistible mixture of vampire romance, beguiling mystery, and old-fashioned Southern charm. Vampires have officially come out of the coffin, and Miss Sookie cant wait for one to come her way.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

Mary Ann Shaffer, Annie Barrows

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society Mary Ann Shaffer, Annie Barrows Amazon Price: $23.07
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By: Random House Audio
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 228 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

“ I wonder how the book got to Guernsey? Perhaps there is some sort of secret homing instinct in books that brings them to their perfect readers.” January 1946: London is emerging from the shadow of the Second World War, and writer Juliet Ashton is looking for her next book subject. Who could imagine that she would find it in a letter from a man she’s never met, a native of the island of Guernsey, who has come across her name written inside a book by Charles Lamb….

As Juliet and her new correspondent exchange letters, Juliet is drawn into the world of this man and his friends—and what a wonderfully eccentric world it is. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society—born as a spur-of-the-moment alibi when its members were discovered breaking curfew by the Germans occupying their island—boasts a charming, funny, deeply human cast of characters, from pig farmers to phrenologists, literature lovers all.

Juliet begins a remarkable correspondence with the society’s members, learning about their island, their taste in books, and the impact the recent German occupation has had on their lives. Captivated by their stories, she sets sail for Guernsey, and what she finds will change her forever.

Written with warmth and humor as a series of letters, this novel is a celebration of the written word in all its guises, and of finding connection in the most surprising ways.


From the Hardcover edition.

A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose (Oprah's Book Club, Selection 61)

Eckhart Tolle

A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose (Oprah's Book Club, Selection 61) Eckhart Tolle Amazon Price: $19.77
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By: Penguin
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1292 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

I think I will stay with the Earth God created... 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 1 people found this review helpful.

It's a much better earth than the one this evil, lying misleader has to offer. He paints a pretty picture...that completely removed God from your life...Don't you know??? you take the place of GOD now according to this man. I don't know about you, but I in no way feel I could ever take the place of God, nor would I try to strip myself of the many blessings God has for my life by sayin I am GOD. That is what these people are doing to you in this book. It will lead you down a lonely sad road that eventually leads straight to HELL!! Don't buy it!

Undecided. 3 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This was not a quick read for me. I am almost done with it, and I still don't know what to think of it. It makes you question your every thought.

Editorial Review:

A spiritual classic. A number-one New York Times bestseller. An international phenomenon. The Power of Now established Eckhart Tolle as one of today's leading spiritual thinkers. And now his long-awaited new book takes his inspiring message to the next level of understanding.

Unabridged CDs - 6 CDs, 7 1Ž2 hours

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Stieg Larsson

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo Stieg Larsson Amazon Price: $19.77
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 61 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

It’s about the disappearance forty years ago of Harriet Vanger, a young scion of one of the wealthiest families in Sweden . . . and about her octogenarian uncle, determined to know the truth about what he believes was her murder.

It’s about Mikael Blomkvist, a crusading journalist recently at the wrong end of a libel case, hired to get to the bottom of Harriet’s disappearance . . . and about Lisbeth Salander, a twenty-four-year-old pierced and tattooed genius hacker possessed of the hard-earned wisdom of someone twice her age who assists Blomkvist with the investigation. This unlikely team discovers a vein of nearly unfathomable iniquity running through the Vanger family, astonishing corruption in the highest echelons of Swedish industrialism and an unexpected connection between themselves.

Contagiously exciting, it’s about society at its most hidden, and about the intimate lives of a brilliantly realized cast of characters, all of them forced to face the darker aspects of their world and of their own lives.

One Fifth Avenue CD

Candace Bushnell

One Fifth Avenue CD Candace Bushnell Amazon Price: $23.07
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By: Hyperion
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 16 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

"ONE FIFTH AVENUE is a modern comedy of manners -- a landmark novel, if you like. Its observations about money, the Internet, the function of art in society as wellas sex romps, social climbing and snobbery enhance Bushnell's reputation as an astute observer of modern life....Carrie Bradshaw wannabes as well as women (and men) near Bushnell's age -- she turns 50 this year -- will be pulled into this refreshing and highly entertaining novel about the power of money, sex and celebrity."
--USA TODAY

"Bushnell...broadens her scope in her latest ode to New York strivers and sophisticates...The fun lies in the author's acute observations about everything from real estate envy to midlife crises."
--More

"Where [Bushnell] goes, her army of stilletoed fans follow. You gotta love it: the conflict, the secrets-telling, the peek into the world of the rich and valueless. It all adds up to a juicy summer read."
--New York Post

"One Fifth Avenue is all things an escapist read she be: quick and wicked and wry. There's a blown-out bitch to root against, a star-crossed couple to root for, and a Tim Gunn-style best friend who deserves his own book. Great, guiltless fun."
--Entertainment Weekly

From one of the most consistently astute and engaging social commentators of our day comes another look at the tough and tender women of New York City--this time, through the lens of where they live.

One Fifth Avenue, the Art Deco beauty towering over one of Manhattan's oldest and most historically hip neighborhoods, is a one-of-a-kind address, the sort of building you have to earn your way into--one way or another. For the women in Candace Bushnell's new novel, One Fifth Avenue, this edifice is essential to the lives they've carefully established--or hope to establish. From the hedge fund king's wife to the aging gossip columnist to the free-spirited actress (a recent refugee from L.A.), each person's game plan for a rich life comes together under the soaring roof of this landmark building.

Acutely observed and mercilessly witty, One Fifth Avenue is a modern-day story of old and new money, that same combustible mix that Edith Wharton mastered in her novels about New York's Gilded Age and F. Scott Fitzgerald illuminated in his Jazz Age tales. Many decades later, Bushnell's New Yorkers suffer the same passions as those fictional Manhattanites from eras past: They thirst for power, for social prominence, and for marriages that are successful--at least to the public eye. But Bushnell is an original, and One Fifth Avenue is so fresh that it reads as if sexual politics, real estate theft, and fortunes lost in a day have never happened before.

From Sex and the City through four successive novels, Bushnell has revealed a gift for tapping into the zeitgeist of any New York minute and, as one critic put it, staying uncannily "just the slightest bit ahead of the curve." And with each book, she has deepened her range, but with a light touch that makes her complex literary accomplishments look easy. Her stories progress so nimbly and ring so true that it can seem as if anyone might write them--when, in fact, no one writes novels quite like Candace Bushnell. Fortunately for us, with One Fifth Avenue, she has done it again.

The Given Day CD

Dennis Lehane

The Given Day CD Dennis Lehane Amazon Price: $47.25
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 17 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Set in Boston at the end of the First World War, New York Times bestselling author Dennis Lehane's long-awaited eighth novel unflinchingly captures the political and social unrest of a nation caught at the crossroads between past and future. Filled with a cast of unforgettable characters more richly drawn than any Lehane has ever created, The Given Day tells the story of two families—one black, one white—swept up in a maelstrom of revolutionaries and anarchists, immigrants and ward bosses, Brahmins and ordinary citizens, all engaged in a battle for survival and power. Beat cop Danny Coughlin, the son of one of the city's most beloved and powerful police captains, joins a burgeoning union movement and the hunt for violent radicals. Luther Laurence, on the run after a deadly confrontation with a crime boss in Tulsa, works for the Coughlin family and tries desperately to find his way home to his pregnant wife.

Here, too, are some of the most influential figures of the era—Babe Ruth; Eugene O'Neill; leftist activist Jack Reed; NAACP founder W. E. B. DuBois; Mitchell Palmer, Woodrow Wilson's ruthless Red-chasing attorney general; cunning Massachusetts governor Calvin Coolidge; and an ambitious young Department of Justice lawyer named John Hoover.

Coursing through some of the pivotal events of the time—including the Spanish Influenza pandemic—and culminating in the Boston Police Strike of 1919, The Given Day explores the crippling violence and irrepressible exuberance of a country at war with, and in the thrall of, itself. As Danny, Luther, and those around them struggle to define themselves in increasingly turbulent times, they gradually find family in one another and, together, ride a rising storm of hardship, deprivation, and hope that will change all their lives.

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao

Junot Díaz

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao Junot Díaz Amazon Price: $26.37
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 201 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Overrated. 2 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I'd heard good things, but was disappointed... This book had its moments, but hype aside, I found it pretty offensive (frequent use of the n-word etc) with a nearly indecipherable plot. There are lots of giant footnotes which are kind of fun at first, but so irrelevant to the story I eventually stopped reading them. Character development in the Oscar Wao department (isn't he the main character?) was so poor, I found it difficult to care about him. This coming from a girl who cries at sad TV commercials.

In a nutshell: The book wanders aimlessly and comes to an ending which evokes little emotion or feeling... aside from being painfully predictable.

Junot Diaz is amazing and so is Oscar Wao 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This book was one that I couldn't put down. I have liked Junot Diaz since I read Drown but this book showed a side of him that is deeper and more intricate. I do think that it's possibly a bit difficult to understand, or maybe not as amazing if you do not know anything about Dominican culture but if you have even the slightest understanding of the culture you will be as engaged and amazed as I was with The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao.

Editorial Review:

The long-awaited-and thrillingly satisfying, genuinely original- first novel from the unmistakable voice behind the story collection Drown.

The Secret Life of Bees

Sue Monk Kidd

The Secret Life of Bees Sue Monk Kidd List Price: $80.00
By: Listening Library
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1400 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Lovely and Sad Story 3 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I know I am very late to the party when it comes to "The Secret Life of Bees". It was at a second hand store, and was the best of what was available, so I picked it up. The words and images in this novel set in 1964 South Carolina in 1964 were very evocative...when Kidd describes the oppressive heat - I can practically taste that hot, dusty air.

There were sections when Lily reflects on the mother she's lost and the father she never really had that touched my heart. This young girl's voice comes through so strong and clear that sometimes I forgot the loss she'd experienced. And then I would read something like this.

"That night I lay in bed and thought about dying and going to be with my other in paradise. I would meet her saying, "Mother, forgive. Please forgive," and she would kiss my skin till it grew chapped and tell me I was not to blame. She would tell me this for the first ten thousand years."

Anyone who has ever been either a parent or a child (!) couldn't help but be touched by the pain and loneliness behind those words.

Lily is a girl full of pain, hungering for the slightest bit of affection, and fueled by anger. And yet, I didn't get a sense that she wanted anyone to pity her - she just wanted the smallest chance at a normal life, the tiniest sign that someone valued her as a person, could recognize the hurt she felt.

"Did this mean that if I told May about T. Ray's mounds of grits, his dozens of small cruelties, about my killing my mother - that hearing it, she would feel everything I did? I wanted to know what happened when two people felt it. Would it divide the hurt in two, make it lighter to bear, the way feeling someone's joy seemed to double it?"

This book was an interesting mix of racial tension, Southern life, 1960's politics and the mysteries of female relationships. With so many intertwining issues, it was difficult for me to focus on the underlying message, but I did take an image from here, a message from there. And sometimes I just enjoyed the writing.

"The first week at August's was a consolation, a pure relief. The world will give you that once in a while, a brief time-out; the boxing bell rings and you go to your corner, where somebody dabs mercy on your beat-up life."

At other times, I found my cynicism rising - sometimes, (and I understand how ironic this will sound in a story of girl whose mother dies and whose father does not love her) sometimes the events unfolding struck me as "too good to be true". Or more accurately, to coincidental to be believable.

In the end, though, this book has many lovely parts, many small windows into a world and time and life I will never know.

Editorial Review:

Sue Monk Kidd's ravishing debut novel has stolen the hearts of reviewers and readers alike with its strong, assured voice. Set in South Carolina in 1964, The Secret Life of Bees tells the story of Lily Owens, whose life has been shaped around the blurred memory of the afternoon her mother was killed. When Lily's fierce-hearted "stand-in mother," Rosaleen, insults three of the town's fiercest racists, Lily decides they should both escape to Tiburon, South Carolina--a town that holds the secret to her mother's past. There they are taken in by an eccentric trio of black beekeeping sisters who introduce Lily to a mesmerizing world of bees, honey, and the Black Madonna who presides over their household. This is a remarkable story about divine female power and the transforming power of love--a story that women will share and pass on to their daughters for years to come.

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